Port Welshpool is an ideal destination for fishing
– The coastal Gippsland village of Port Welshpool revolves around fishing. Many commercial fishermen use this busy port and their colourful trawlers are located at the wharf.
– Launch a boat from the local boat ramp and try recreational fishing.
– Walk along the recently restored Long Jetty.
– The port also offers superb views of Wilsons Promontory, and is a popular holiday destination for families, with its safe swimming beaches, walking tracks, picnic and barbecue facilities.
Port Welshpool is around 2.5 hours from Melbourne along the South Gippsland Highway.
– Whalers first used the area as early as the 1830s.
– The town was gazetted as Welshpool in 1851, and was officially renamed Port Welshpool in 1952.
– The town built a long jetty for loading and unloading fish catches, cattle and timber. The arrival of the railway in 1891 allowed the local produce to be transported to Melbourne for sale.
– Fishers in the early days used wooden boats with two pointed ends. Cotton nets, with sisal ropes and corks as floats were used from these boats using sails and oars. The fish were sent to Melbourne on the train packed in wooden boxes with ice to keep them fresh.
– As well as fishing in the embayment of Corner Inlet, fishers living in Port Welshpool target southern rock lobster and sharks. Rock lobster fishing started in the 1930s. During World War II catching sharks using longlines started. Today there are three rock lobster boats that fish outside the Inlet. There are five shark-fishing vessels based at Port Welshpool.
– A fast car and passenger ferry used to leave from the Port Welshpool wharf to George Town in Tasmania during 1993.
– An unfortunate event in town’s history was the beaching of 300 whales in 1957 that attracted about 10,000 people to the township.
*Historical data was gathered from Seafood Industry of Victoria website.
Dump Point
Long Jetty Caravan Park, $10 or free for guests
Supermarket
Port Welshpool General Store, 93 Lewis Street
Quick facts about Port Welshpool
– Population approximately 230
– 195 kilometres south-east of Melbourne
Port Welshpool – Activities and attractions
– Port Welshpool and District Maritime Museum
– Take a fishing charter or boat cruise
Major events in Port Welshpool
– Port Welshpool Sea Days – January
Playground
– 73 Lewis Street Port Welshpool (Foreshore Reserve: toilets, tables & seating, rotunda)
Port Welshpool is very close to its sister town of Welshpool, but is also not too far from other Gippsland towns.
